Birds of a Feather Marry Together
by unifiedFiction
Summary: Jacques Schnee has given his daughters an ultimatum: find husbands, or he will find one for each of them. Desperate to avoid this fate, they turn to people close to them for help with the easiest plan they can think of: lie. The lie is only supposed to have to be for one night, over dinner. But things quickly spiral out of control. How long can they keep this up?


"Christ, if Atlas's ships were gaudy, then there isn't a word in the English language to describe this place."

Qrow Branwen examined the Schnee Manor with crossed arms and a frown. There was no way something this extravagant was necessary for a family of five, even with servants and workers living on-site. He scoffed and shook his head, already regretting his decision to walk the property on foot as he took the first few steps up the far-too-large staircase. "Seriously," he muttered to the man who had guided him here from the gate, "can't they afford an escalator?"

There was a small hesitation, but no sign of humor in the man's expression. "I don't believe that would match the decor, sir," he said simply, causing Qrow to roll his eyes and sigh deeply. "If you'll excuse me, I am going to let my master know you are here."

"Yeah, yeah." Qrow waved a hand lazily, and watched the man nod and walk briskly ahead of him before disappearing through the elegant door. In retrospect, Winter would probably scold him for his nonchalant attitude.

Then again, she was lucky he agreed to wear a suit and wait until dinner to drink. She'd just have to cut her losses somewhere.

He stepped through the door, noting the man from before bowing and gesturing towards him. His eyes quickly shifted to the other figures in the room, both of which examining him with unimpressed expressions. He glanced between them for a moment before clearing his throat and straightening his posture. Maybe he could offer just a bit more effort. Winter would just have to owe him an extra favor.

"This is your new fiancé..?" the man asked, not even bothering to hide disgust from his voice as he looked at Winter with an expression to match.

Maybe she'd owe him two extra favors, he thought as the urge to make a crude gesture came to mind. He looked at her for a moment, wondering if she could tell that was what he was thinking, before looking back to the annoyingly posh man who could only be Jacques Schnee. "It's an honor to meet you, sir," he said respectfully, even giving a polite bow. Three favors, he decided.

Jacques snorted and shook his head. "Honestly, Winter, I didn't realize you were desperate," he said with a huff.

The quick twitch of her eyebrow didn't go unnoticed, but she spoke in a deceptively calm demeanor. "Desperation had nothing to do with it, father. I think you'll find there is more to him than meets the eye. I met him through the General himself, after all."

Another scoff from Jacques. "Yes, because James is such a good judge of character," he said sarcastically, shaking his head. "Well, I suppose we shall see about that. Mister Branwen, yes? Do have enough respect to shed your coat before letting Winter show you to the dining room." He waved a hand dismissively, making it clear just how uninterested he was in whatever response Qrow might give, and left the room.

Qrow waited to ensure he was out of the room before letting his shoulders slouch again and looking to Winter. "You hear that? I'm Mister Branwen now. I think he likes me."

The snicker that accompanied his comment earned him a glare from Winter. "Would you take this seriously?" She snapped, voice low and harsh. "Stop being so... so over-the-top."

Qrow put his hands up defensively. "Whoa, hey, you told me to behave like I was meeting a king. I'm trying here." He narrowed his eyes and cut her off before she could say anything more. "Don't forget who's doing who the favor here, Ice Queen. Whether you can tell or not, I am trying."

Winter gritted her teeth and glared at him. She drew a deep breath, and despite the annoyance obvious on her face, the steps she took toward him were cool and even. She stepped over to him and began to unbutton his jacket. "Don't speak of our deal for the rest of the night," she whispered, so quietly he almost didn't hear it. She slipped the jacket from his shoulders and handed it off to another servant — a woman who had seemingly appeared from nowhere — and then looked back at him. "Shall we go, then?" She asked casually, as if he hadn't just been scolded seconds earlier.

"...Yeah, sure," Qrow said with a small nod. Hopefully she would get the message that he was agreeing to her terms.

She nodded and smiled. A full 180 from before. "Wonderful." She slid a hand down his arm, taking his hand and intertwining their fingers together. Qrow didn't even get the chance to tighten his own grip before he was being gently but firmly tugged to another doorway.

It's just one night, he reminded himself. You can handle this.

She directed him through a large room with a fireplace, couches, chairs, and decorations. A sitting room, he assumed - a rich person's way of making useless extra space look like it was being used. Qrow rolled his eyes and continued to follow Winter's pulling, feeling out of place in his black suit among the whites, greys, and blues throughout the manor. It felt like he was being stared at, whether there was anyone else around or not. Even the paintings on the wall felt like they were glaring at him. He swallowed at the tightness in his throat and shook his head to clear his thoughts. Who cared if he stood out? Did he really want to blend in with this kind of bland scenery anyway? Hell no.

Through another door, the first thing that caught his eye was a balcony of sorts beyond the extravagant table. A girl he could only assume was a servant was making their way along it, head pointed down and steps quick and even. She ran her hand along the banister, occasionally pulling away to rub her fingers together before putting it back. He couldn't help but watch her methodical movements until she disappeared through the door at the end of the balcony. Only then did he look down at the actual room he was occupying.

Even the little bit of green foliage accompanying the white flowers on the table felt out of place, the only warm color in the whole room besides himself. The table was big enough to accommodate his sister's entire clan, though that at least made sense considering Jacques' position of 'importance' in Atlas. The rest of the room was the same as everything Qrow had seen so far - cold. White, gray, the occasional light blue.

He idly wondered if the food they'd be served would be the same way, or if it would stand out like the flowers. The thought made him smirk, though he suppressed the snicker to keep from getting glared at again.

"My father should be back soon," Winter said, cutting through the silence. He glanced down at her, a bit surprised that she was still smiling up at him. "Shall we chat until he arrives?"

"Uh… sure." Qrow nodded, following her lead to sit in one of the ornate chairs around the table.

* * *

"Ruby? Ruby!" Before the younger girl could respond, Weiss snatched her scroll from her hand with a huff, tucking it between the white material of her dress and the black leather seat of the car. "Give me that! You can't spend the whole night playing games!"

"Hey!" Ruby pouted, crossing her arms. "I wasn't playing any games! I was… texting Yang." She averted her gaze, twiddling her fingers nervously. "I've never had to do anything like this before, okay? I needed advice." She found a ribbon on her dress, and soon enough it was being included in her twiddling as she weaved it mindlessly between her fingers.

Weiss rolled her eyes. "First of all, it's not like we're really engaged. Second, Ruby, I told you earlier. No matter how hard you try… Father isn't going to approve of you anyway." She placed a hand over Ruby's to stop her from continuing to play with the ribbon. "You don't have to try so hard."

"But what if he did!" Ruby insisted. "I mean, like, what if I make a really good impression and he-" She cut herself short when Weiss held up a hand, and let out a sigh. "I know, I'm sorry. I just… I don't know, Weiss, this is hard." Her shoulders slumped a bit as she thought of her preemptive defeat.

"Then you shouldn't have agreed to come!" the heiress snapped. Regret immediately showed in her eyes afterward, and she sighed, turning away from Ruby and leaning against the door of the car. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have yelled. I…"

Ruby smiled and grabbed Weiss's hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. "It's alright," she said softly. "I know, you're nervous too. But don't worry!" She smiled that bright smile Weiss knew was meant to cheer her up, though it didn't hide the nervousness in her eyes. "Your BFF is here! We can handle this together. Right?"

Weiss sighed and looked out the window, pretending to be focusing on the scenery as it flew past them despite the fact that none of it particularly caught her attention. "You didn't have to come."

"Of course I did. It's what friends are for." Ruby gave Weiss another, softer smile — a contagious one that she couldn't help but return. "It's just one night. We'll be okay… right?"

"Yeah." Weiss nodded, squeezing Ruby's hand gently. "We'll be fine."

Ruby leaned against Weiss' shoulder, and suddenly the facade of a confident girl ready to take on a challenge was shattered. Right against Weiss' side, Ruby's fidgeting became all the more obvious. A tiny sigh escaped her, and as she watched a large gate open ahead of their vehicle to let them pass into a long private drive, Ruby let out a soft whine and grabbed Weiss' hand.

"Everything will be fine," Weiss assured her. She let her thumb brush over the back of Ruby's hand in what she hoped would be as comforting a gesture as she intended. "Weren't you the one who just convinced me of that?"

"I know, I know…" Ruby nodded, though worry was still clear in her eyes. She took a deep breath, releasing it slowly. "Okay. Okay. Maybe we should practice?"

Weiss stared at her blankly, utter confusion on her face. "Practice what?"

"You know, the kind of things we should say." Ruby bounced, biting her lip. "What's the proper way to say 'I love you'? Is it 'I love you' or is it 'I love you'?" She gasped suddenly. Weiss' deep sigh went entirely unnoticed as a deep blush crossed her face. "Y-Your dad isn't going to expect to see us k-kiss, is he?!"

Weiss also blushed, but she rolled her eyes. "S-Stop being ridiculous. That is the last thing he would want to see." She squeezed Ruby's hand even harder. "Please just calm down."

Ruby let out a small squeak and suddenly got very still. "Right! Right. Everything's okay." She took another deep breath. "Everything. Is. Okay."

Weiss glanced back out the window to gauge their approach to the mansion and frowned when she saw they were right upon it. "It has better be, because we're out of time."

Ruby swallowed at the lump in her throat. "Oh god, Weiss, am I ready for this?"

She was answered first with a hug, then with words.

"Of course you are."


End file.
